The Shootdown of Flight 60528 Cold case

[fat tony]

The rest of the story is at the link below:

http://bobdowning.########.dk/2011/04/shootdown-of-flight-60528.html

Excerpt:

The United States emerged from World War II victorious and the most powerful nation on Earth with its enemies completely vanquished. With a world weary from years of war, American leaders at the time expected an extended period of peace and reconstruction based on cooperation with wartime allies. It soon became apparent, however, that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, more commonly referred to as the Soviet Union, and more specifically, Russia, along with its newly expanded bloc of closely-controlled satellites were acting with increased hostility toward the nations of the West, particularly the United States.
Rather than a shooting war, this new conflict came to be know as the “Cold War,” played out in many theaters behind the scenes as a political chess match with the threat of nuclear holocaust constantly hovering above the participants. The United States initiated new actions to protect the security of the U.S., among them national-level intelligence activities. Most decision makers at the time remembered the trauma of the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 which caused heavy loss of life, great damage to the U.S. Navy, and swept the U.S. into the Second World War. These officials were determined to prevent another Pearl Harbor.
At the same time, the primary object of concern for the U.S., namely the Soviet Union, was a “denied” country, that is to say, travel within its territories for foreigners (and even its own citizens) was severely restricted. Obtaining reliable information about the country or its military capabilities was extremely difficult, if not impossible, through conventional intelligence methods. In response to the need for more verifiable intelligence, defense policymakers established a national program of reconnaissance, carried out by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. The U.S. Army also engaged in reconnaissance, but primarily for tactical objectives.
The existence of the intelligence program was kept classified for decades. When I arrived in West Berlin in 1965, the 6912th Security Squadron had been at the U.S. base at Tempelhof Airport for several years, but even the base commander did not know the true mission of the squadron for a long period after the group arrived on base. Although it became obvious that the Soviets suspected some aspects of the program, many key features remained secret from them. The fact that the U.S. was running a clandestine operation in West Berlin, a city 100 miles inside the Iron Curtain and in the very middle of Soviet military activities, grated on the Soviets’ nerves, and as a result, they took every real and imagined opportunity to exert pressure, both political and military, upon the U.S. military presence in West Berlin.
The decision to keep the program secret had some unfortunate implications: it prevented public recognition for the veterans of the program as well as public honor for those who lost their lives while conducting various forms of intelligence gathering, such as aerial reconnaissance. During the Cold War Period of 1945-1977 more than 40 reconnaissance aircraft were shot down by the Soviet Union. The secrecy of the intelligence programs prevented recognition of the slain military personnel at the time of the incidents. Their loss was mourned by their families, fellow soldiers, sailors, and airmen, but the fallen could not be accorded public honors. The end of the Cold War has allowed the United States to lift some of its security restrictions concerning these programs and allowed recognition of the achievements and sacrifices of these silent warriors, and to tell their stories.
On 2 September, 1958, Soviet MiG 17 pilots shot down Flight 60528, a U.S. Air Force C-130 reconnaissance aircraft, over Soviet Armenia. Six crewmen were aboard along with eleven Security Service Russian language specialists. What exactly happened is unclear. The C-130 crew navigated by homing in on a beacon signal, and it was suspected that Soviet navigational beacons deliberately overpowered the beacon Flight 60528 was following and drew the aircraft into Russian territory. The aircraft was easily identifiable as U.S. Air Force and non-lethal. One Russian pilot identified the craft as “a four engine transport.” Four Soviet aircraft attacked the plane in groups of two. On the third approach the C-130 caught fire, the tail section blew off, and the plane plummeted to the earth. No parachutes or survivors were identified.

 

[Grizzly Adams]

Here's a Canadian Cold Case I stumbled on the other day. Not a shoot down but what we would call Terrorism these days.

Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 21 was a domestic scheduled flight from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada via Prince George, Fort St. John, Fort Nelson and Watson Lake on Thursday, July 8, 1965. The Douglas DC-6B plane crashed near 100 Mile House, British Columbia, taking the lives of all 52 aboard.[1][2] An inquest determined that the explosion was the result of a bomb, but the source of the bomb was never determined.[1]

Contents [hide]
1 Incident
2 Aftermath
3 See also
4 References
5 External links
Incident[edit]
While en route from Vancouver, BC to Prince George the DC-6 Empress of City of Buenos Aires, piloted by WW 2 veteran John 'Jack' Steele,[3] crashed after passing Ashcroft, British Columbia. About 15:40 hrs, three Mayday calls were heard by air traffic control in Vancouver. An explosion had occurred in the left aft lavatory. The tail separated from the fuselage. The aircraft spiraled and crashed into a wooded area. All of the 46 passengers and 6 crew perished.[2] The crash site is 40 km (25 mi) west of 100 Mile House, British Columbia.[1] Remnants of the DC-6 remain at the crash site near Dog Creek in British Columbia.[4]

Aftermath[edit]
A coroner's inquest concluded "an explosive substance foreign to the normal contents of the aircraft" caused the crash. A witness on the ground saw the tail of the aircraft separate from the fuselage and debris trail out behind the aircraft. The debris turned out to be the bodies of passengers forced out by the depressurization of the aircraft. The fuselage was consumed by fire where it fell but the tail, found 500 metres away, was not. Rescue crews reached the crash site while the fire continued to burn but no survivors were found. Crash investigators found traces of acid that led them to believe a bomb in the lavatory was involved. Traces of potassium nitrate and carbon, consistent with a "low-velocity explosion" were found. Gunpowder or stumping powder causes a low-velocity explosion. The explosion damaged bulkheads in the lavatory, severed pipes in the tail and tore a metre-wide hole in the side of the fuselage. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police investigation focused on four passengers although none was a suspect. Charges were never laid. The source of the explosion remains unknown.[1]

They came up with 4 possible suspects, but no one was ever charged.

Grizz

 

[fat tony]

Thanks, that is an interesting case.